


Small words and bigger promises

by lanondolce



Category: SCP Foundation
Genre: Childhood Friends, Crush at First Sight, F/M, Fluff, Just a lil smidgen of it, Light Angst, M/M, Multi, for flavor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-08
Updated: 2021-02-08
Packaged: 2021-03-14 12:14:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,096
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29295729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lanondolce/pseuds/lanondolce
Summary: In which Draven has a crush.
Relationships: Draven Kondraki & SCP-166 (SCP Foundation), Draven Kondraki/James Talloran, Draven Kondraki/SCP-166 (SCP Foundation)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 15





	Small words and bigger promises

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place in the same universe as another fic I've written ("Birds, bees, and storks, oh my!") where Draven and Meri are the same age, and Draven has been assigned to be her Foundation-sanctioned playmate. However, it isn't required to read that fic in order to understand this one

She was pretty.

Incredibly so. Sadly, at that time, little Draven's knowledge of the English lexicon was lacking, and he couldn't find the right words to fully express himself.

But she was pretty. He knew that much. Very, very pretty. She had long blonde hair that looked soft to the touch, and big bright eyes. Her eyes especially were most fascinating to him: one was blue, and one was green. 

She also happened to have a pair of antlers and long, fuzzy legs. But that didn't matter to Draven. To him, she was but a pretty, friendly girl that he loved to play with, whose laughter sounded lovely, and that listened in awestruck fascination when he related anecdotes of his life to her. She loved listening to him, listening to Draven as he told her all about the things she had never known before: school, classes, pencils, computers, video-games, fast food places, public parks, slides, television, books-166 could've listened to him talk forever.

And perhaps, had nobody interrupted them, that would've indeed been so. Draven would've spoken and spoken until his throat dried and he collapsed in exhaustion. But his time was up: an adult in a yellow hazmat suit entered the enclosure. It was hard to make out his face from underneath the thick screen, but Draven quickly understood that the stern lines of his brow meant that no matter how hard he pleaded, he wouldn't get a little more time with his new best friend. That didn't stop him from complaining about it, however. Loudly.  
166 was equally as displeased with Draven's departure, but there was only so much she could do. She watched as the adult picked up a screaming and kicking Draven, lips curled into a frown.

A small hand reached out for the girl.

"I'll come back! I'll see you again!"

At this, her eyes lit up. 

"Promise-?" The doors to the containment cell opened. And once they would open, she would be alone again. 

"I promise!" Draven writhed, though it was no use. He was slung over the researcher's shoulder, and the last thing 166 saw were his determined green eyes and clenched fists.

She smiled.

"Huh?" Kondraki turned to look at his son. Since the small boy had come home, he had been in something of a daze, eyes unfocused and mouth always hanging ever so slightly ajar.

"What's her name?"

"Oh, you mean…166?"

"Yeah, her!"

"You know her name, you just said it."

"But her name can't possibly be 166."

Kondraki scratched the back of his head. He still wasn't sure about this whole thing: the other Site directors had insisted the experiment had been a success, and that this would've overall been beneficial to 166's containment and growth, but he still wasn't sure. He guessed only time would tell.

"You see, Draven, the…people…there, they…I dunno, maybe her dad wasn't very good at coming with names."

"What?"

"You know she's not human. Maybe-" Kondraki proceeded to lie through his teeth. At that time, it seemed like the best course of action, and he simply decided that any conflict following this discussion would've been future Kondraki's problem "-maybe her parents had over 200 kids, and she was number 166. And that's why her name is 166."

"Really?!" Draven's eyes widened in a mixture of shock, awe, and naivete.

"Yeah…" Kondraki continued. He really felt like a beer "…Why don't you ask her, next time you see her?"

Draven nodded vigorously, and stormed off to his room. Kondraki was left alone with his thoughts in the dimly lit kitchen. 

* * *

"Why not?!"

"Because…Draven, you know 166 is very sensitive, and often, man-made materials will cause her to-"

"But this isn't man-made at all! These are just flowers!"

"We cannot allow anything that has not been properly disinfected inside her room. It is too great a risk-we do it for 166's sake, you know."

"Then disinfect them!"

"…I don't think you can disinfect flowers, Draven. It's easier to just toss them out. Come along now, maybe you can bring her a different gift next time."

Draven was very clearly not happy about this.

He stubbornly held onto the makeshift bouquet: it was mostly composed of small, yellow flowers, the kind that bloomed in the grass, but there were also a few tiny purple and blue ones. He had most likely found them in his backyard.

It required a lot of convincing on the researcher's part to take the gift away from him. She assured him that it wouldn't go to waste, and was only able to toss the bouquet away once the young boy had entered 166's cell, and the doors had slid shut behind him.

"So, sorry about that…" Draven frowned, as he finished his recollection of the events that had just transpired. He was really bummed out about it-he was so sure 166 would have loved them. Because girls loved flowers, right? That's what he knew. Girls loved gifts and they also loved flowers, so flowers as a gift sounded perfect.

"It's alright, really!" She smiled and shook her head "Besides, I see flowers everyday. They're nothing special."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah! I mean, they're pretty, but like I said…" she trailed off, eyeing one of the many vines that were crawling up the walls.

"Nothing special, huh?" Draven took her words into consideration for a moment.

"…Well, now that I think about it, that makes sense. I see stuff like cars 'n trucks everyday, so I don't think they're special at all. But you've never seen one, so they must be special to you." 

"Yeah!" 166 nodded at her friend's words "The more you see something, the less special it gets. Special things are very rare, after all."

"That's not always true! I've seen you many times, but you're still special!" Draven was quick to retort. The words slipped out of his mouth before he could stop himself, and his dark skin flushed a slightly deeper shade in embarrassment.

"You've seen me many times, but not _that_ many. And besides, you still only see me once a month. I'm sure if you saw me everyday, I would stop being a super big deal."

"No!" Draven vehemently denied, shaking his head "Even if I saw you everyday, you would still be special. Maybe every now and then, I would forget how special you are, but you'd always find a way to remind me. You are really are…that special to me, 166."

Her round eyes were wide. For a second, she said nothing, but then she laughed, and pulled the boy into a hug. She was a little taller than him, but Draven found he didn't mind at all (so long as she wasn't teasing him for it, at least).

"…I feel exactly the same, Draven. You're really special, too. And wonderful. Sometimes, I wonder how sad I would be if you weren't here."

"Don't wonder about it, then. I don't want you to be sad."

* * *

"Ta-dah!"

Draven presented the small object to 166. It was made entirely of wood, and vaguely resembled a mouse.

166 picked it up, big bright eyes blinking inquisitively as she inspected it.

"What is it?"

"It's a toy! A toy mouse."

"A toy...?"

"Yeah! I mean, to keep you company when you're alone. Here, look what it can do-!"

Draven held out his hand, and 166 picked up on his cue to return the object to him. His ears flushed a dark scarlet color when her fingers brushed against his, but nonetheless, he ignored the thumping of his own heart and set the little toy down.   
He wound it up once, twice, three times, and it scurried off into the cell when he let it go. 166 gasped in surprise, and the noise soon turned into a delighted giggle when the toy's trajectory was halted by the thick foliage. It tumbled over and rolled on its side, small wooden wheels still turning and whirring.

The two of them ran after it, and 166 picked it back up.

"It's adorable! Where did you get it?"

"Hehe…I made it…" Draven scratched the back of his head, a proud smile creeping on his face.   
The small thing had "amateur" written all over it, and would've most likely fallen apart in a few weeks time, if not sooner. But the jagged mouse whiskers and crooked eyes were indicators of the fact that the toy had been hand-crafted with much love. One eye was dotted with a spot of yellow paint, and the other with a spot of blue paint.

"Really?! That's amazing, Draven!" 166's eyes crinkled in delight. 

  
She was taller now, aged 13 like Draven. He had yet to surpass her in terms of height, though he was catching up. He was thin and lanky like most prepubescent boys his age, and his voice cracked every other phrase, making 166 giggle every time it happened. He'd give her a shove in response, and she'd shove him back; these interactions often ended with the two of them rough housing as they rolled around on the humid floor of her cell, laughing and making threats they didn't mean.

For a while, the two were positively enraptured by Draven's creation: he proceeded to open up its belly, and explain to her how it functioned and how he had built it. 166 listened as attentively as she always did, asking questions Draven was more than happy to answer. As it turned out, this was actually toy mouse number 12: all of his other attempts had either failed to stand upright entirely, or looked so odd and janky Draven had just been too ashamed of their appearance to present them as a gift to 166.

Their attention strayed towards other subjects an hour later, however. They were sat down on a tiny green hill, talking about this and that as Draven contemplated the pretty white flower 166 had grown and plucked for him.

"…Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

166 doe ears perked up at the question, in a way Draven always found heart-wrenchingly adorable.

"No. Not that I know of, at least. Why do you ask?"

"Nothing, I just…I remembered something really stupid my dad said once."

"Pfft, what?"

"He said that maybe your name was 166 because you actually had over 200 sibilings, and you were number 166."

She clutched her stomach and burst out laughing at the notion "200 sibilings? Seriosuly? I mean, I might have them…I guess I just wouldn't know…"

Hearing that, something in Draven's chest tightened.   
He thought back to his dad and all the lies he had told him. He thought back to the short man with eyes like 166's, but with a gaze completely unlike hers. 

_'He's a secret agent, Draven. 166 can't know about him.'_

' _Secret agent, my ass…'_ Draven had scoffed to himself once he became old enough to understand his father was full of crap.

"By the way, did you know I'm going to join the Foundation when I'm 18?"

"Really?!"

"Yeah! I'm not sure exactly what I'm going to do yet, nonetheless…I know I'll definitely get to spend more time with you."

"Wow, that sounds awesome! But…" her expression suddenly turned sad.

"But what?"

"This place is dangerous, Draven. Not everyone here is like me. I mean, I've seen them: there's a bunch of really scary people, really scary…things. And, the ones here aren't even that bad. The doctors told me, at Site 19, for example…there's creatures so terrifying, they're like something out of a nightmare."

"They don't scare me!"

"It's not about being scared, Draven, like I said, it's dangerous! This place is dangerous. For example, Dr. Rosa, Dr. Weiss, you've talked to them, haven't you…? It's been months since I've seen either of them. The other researchers told me they got transferred to a difference Site, but…I know they're lying. I can tell from the look in their eyes. I'm still not sure what happened to them, but…whatever it was, I don't want that to happen to you."

Her brows were furrowed, and her expression was otherwise indiscernible to Draven.

He mulled her words over. He thought back to his father: how he would get up in the middle of night and scream at things that weren't there. How he'd drink himself into a stupor and pass out on the living room floor, because the thoughts in his head were so ugly, he'd rather not think or feel them at all.

In his naivete, Draven had blamed it all on his father. Surely, he thought to himself, he wouldn't be like that. He wouldn't be such a screw-up like his old man. He'd be a proper adult.

But in that moment, he wondered if in ten, twenty years time, he too would be bent over the toilet at 2 am, hacking and retching and crying.

* * *

"By the way, are you going to name it?"

"What-oh! The mouse you gave me?"

"Yeah! I mean…you don't _h_ _ave_ to name it if you don't want to, it does sound kind of silly now that I think of it, we're not little kids anymore, after all…"

"No! I wanna name him. You worked so hard on him, the least he deserves is a name. In fact, I think I'll name him…Bobert."

"Bobert…?"

"Yup, Bobert!"

* * *

  
  


As was expected, after around a week, Bobert's wooden machinations caved in, and he was unable to function from then on out. Nonetheless, 166 treasured him deeply: she made him a hammock from cloth and twigs, and perched little flowers behind his ears. 

She'd sing lullabies she'd made up to him, songs about the moss and the trees, about the caterpillars that munched on leaves and the bugs that crawled on their thousands of legs.

Though Bobert had no real brain nor a pair of functioning ears, and could not appreciate 166's melodies, the researchers tasked with monitoring her containment cell certainly did. One even fell asleep to them once, during a rather lonesome late night. He was harshly reprimanded the morning after, but when he thought back on the girl cooing at her wooden toy mouse, he'd smile regardless.

* * *

  
  


"Huh? James?"

Draven scratched his nose. This was rather awkward for him; despite having grown, despite being a legal adult with a job and all, he still didn't feel that much different compared to the younger boy he had been a few months ago. 

"Yeah…James Talloran…have you heard of him...?" He spoke in a low whisper, despite knowing it wouldn't do him much good, and that the recording devices in the room would’ve picked up on his words anyways.

166 shook her head "I'm pretty sure I haven't. What does he look like?"

"Well, he's, pretty tall-yeah, kinda tall, he's got brown hair, it's short-he also wears glasses! He's…well…"

"Handsome?"

"Yeah…" Draven chuckled slightly. The adjectives he had thought of had been a little less eloquent, but that one still fit. 

"Well, I can ask around, I'm sure somebody's heard of him. Don't worry, I won't tell them I'm doing detective work for my stupid friend who's heads over heels for him, but too stubborn to ask him out."

"I told you, it's not like that!" Draven exclaimed, as if outraged by the very notion that he could possibly have feelings for another man.  
He and 166 never had any real privacy to speak of. He was still allowed to visit her, but as per protocol, there always had to be a supervisor right outside no matter what, listening in on all their conversations. The good news was, however, that most of the time, whoever was tasked with the job was far too uninterested in teenage gossip to write a formal report on whatever it was the two had spoken of during Draven's visit.  
Unless he said something he shouldn't have, the researchers almost always granted him the small mercy of not telling anyone what they had heard. 

"What's it like, then?" 166 teased, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. Draven had officially surpassed her in height on his sixteenth birthday ("Your antlers don't count!"), and he absolutely did not let her live it down. For this reason, she took any chance to knock the young man's ego down a peg or two "A _man_ crush? Bromance?"

"Ugh…" Draven rolled his eyes. It was kind of stupid, really: but he wanted to know 166's thoughts. He'd been struggling with his sexuality for a little over a year now, and he valued her input on things above anyone else's.

166 laughed. And really, she had such a pleasant laugh. It was a sound that soothed Draven's uneasy heart.

"Well, let's try and put it this way. Are you interested in getting close to him?"

"Obviosuly." Draven chortled.

"Right-would you like to hold his hand? I mean, hypothetically speaking: if you were given the chance to hold his hand, would you?"

"…Yes."

"If you were given the chance to kiss him, would you?"

"Yes."

"If you were given the chance to do…something more than that, would you?"

"I mean…depends on…yeah, I guess…" 

Dspite being an adult, 166 still refused to use dirty or inappropriate language. Perhaps it was due to her religious beliefs, perhaps it was her personality. Regardless, Draven found this incredibly amusing, and treasured the few times he had caught her slipping up and swearing.  
At the moment, however, his cheeks were far too flushed and he was feeling far too flustered to dwell on thoughts like those.

"Then, I'm pretty sure you're interested in him. And not just as a friend. Besides-it's not that big a deal, Draven. So what, you also like guys?"

"Agh, it's not just about that-!" He ran a hand through his thick black curls "-It's just, so weird. Like, I don't know how to explain it-I thought I was over that phase of my adolescence, where I felt these stupid fluttery heart palpitations, right? And, I guess I'm just being forced to reconsider something I never thought possible. Like I said, it's weird."

"I don't think you're ever really too old for those 'stupid fluttery heart palpitations'. You can't exactly grow out of falling in love. Also-again, is it really that dramatic? It's not like you just found out you're secretly the prince of some far away country or anything. You're just considering a possibilty-a very likely one, at that."

The two were laying on the dirt and grass. Draven was wearing the specialized clothing he was always made to wear whenever he entered her cell, and 166 donned a thin white sundress. Their clothes would get dirty as a result, but neither ever minded. 

"…Yeah, you're right. I'm being overdramatic, aren't I?"

"Just a little. But we're teenagers, so I guess we're allowed to be a little dramatic about these sort of things."

"We won't be for long, though."

He turned around to look at her.

The light shining down on her was stark and artificial. Cold. Sometimes, when he'd go outside and feel the warmth of the sun's rays on his skin, he'd think about how unfair it was. How 166, a spirit of nature, was being kept from the very place she belonged. From basking in the mid-afternoon glow of a lazy spring day, from feeling the breeze tousle her long hair.

He brought this up sometimes. 166 insisted it wasn't big deal. You couldn't miss things you've never had, after all.

(But he was sure he hadn't imagined the look of sadness behind her eyes)

"How much difference does it make? Being an adult versus being a teenager? 'Cause I know I don't feel that much different." Draven voiced his thoughts.

"I'm not sure. I don't feel different, either. Not much changed for me the day I turned 18. I think it's really more of a…an honorary title."

"Or a legal necessity."

"That too."

They were quiet for a moment. But the silence was comfortable.   
Draven's hand made its way over to 166's smaller one. She took it without a moment's hesitation, and squeezed it tightly. Her hands were smooth, soft and warm, whereas Draven's were larger and calloused, fingernails nearly nonexistent since he had chewed them off a long time ago. But they fit together perfectly.

"Did you know, I actually used to have a crush on you when you were younger?"

Draven's question was unprompted. 166 raised her eyebrows in response.

"Really?" She couldn't conceal the tinge of surprise in her voice "Like, seriously? You had a crush on me?"

"Yeah. It was a real big one, too…my dad said I never stopped talking about you, that I'd go on and on about how I was going to marry you when we got older. I once even pointed out a wedding cake on TV, and asked if we could serve that at our wedding."

166 burst out laughing again, prompting Draven to do the same.

"I can't believe it. You had a crush on me."

"Why not? You're beautiful."

"I'm half deer."

"And?"

She let out another chuckle.

"So, in your eyes, it's okay to have crushes on deer girls, but not on boys?"

"Oh, c'mon-" he gave her a push, one he put no strength whatsoever behind. 

"Still…if it makes you feel any better, I'd marry you."

"-What-?"

"I mean...it's hard to explain, but…I wouldn't mind living out the rest of my life with you. Not as your wife, or maybe…I don't know. Like I said, it's hard to explain."

Draven looked her in the eyes.

They were just as bright and beautiful as the day he had first saw them. Framed by long blonde lashes and utterly mesmerizing. 

"You don't have to explain-I get it. Maybe once we're both old, and if neither of us are married by then, I can ask the Foundation if they'll let me retire with you."

"You'd be willing to spend the rest of your days in a cell-?"

"So long as you're in it, I wouldn't mind."

"…I'd feel kind of guilty, though."

"That'd be silly. There'd be no need to lose sleep over something that'd be my choice."

The look etched on her face betrayed that fact that there were many more things she wanted to talk about, but she cast any dark thoughts aside.

"It's decided, then. If we're both 50, and by then not only did you get rejected by James, but also failed to find any other romantic partner, we'll get married at Site 17."

"Ah, seriously-!"

She laughed, laughed as she always did when she was around Draven, in spite of any heaviness she might've felt in her heart.

Special. It was a word they had used tossed around lot back when they were kids. Special. A highly subjective term, really. But Draven found that no other term fit her.  
Special. There truly was nobody else like her in the whole world-and in the whole galaxy, he was willing to bet. 166 was so important to him-he couldn't imagine what his life would've looked like, had she never entered the picture. Had his father never come home that faithful day, and announced that he had signed him up for a "penpal program".

166 was kind and gentle. She treasured life above all, no matter whose it happened to be. Draven was rougher around the edges, already disillusioned and jaded despite his young age. But in spite of their differences, one thing was true for the both of them: they were lonely. For one reason or another, they had a hard time fitting in with other people. And they had found comfort in each other. Their scheduled encounters gave them something to look forward to every month, gave them a reason to carry on.   
Draven wasn't quite sure when his heart had stopped fluttering around her, when his childish crush had subsided. He sometimes wondered if it was still lingering somewhere in his heart, if all it would've taken to rekindle the flame would've been the smallest of sparks; but ultimately, he decided it didn't matter. 

He didn't care what his relationship with 166 technically was, what he should've labeled his feelings for her as. All that he cared about was being close to her, in any way, shape or form. All that he cared about was seeing her smile, knowing that the things he did for her brought her happiness. 

He loved her. That was all.

**Author's Note:**

> ...I'm just saying, don't get too used to me uploading a fic every three days or so because this isn't normal for me
> 
> I have like 3 brain cells and as of late, 2 of them are exclusively processing scp-related content only. I've been so obsessed w mERI AND DRAVEN BEING FRIENDS AND BEING SOFT and also I've been writing a lot of really edgy shit so I needed to write smth to cleanse my palate 
> 
> This was going to be a little longer, and deal w draven's conflicting feelings over having to keep his knowledge of clef being meri's father a secret and the resulting falling out once she found out. However, I felt this wrapped up nicely-and like I said, this was meant to stay cute and lighthearted. I might keep the concept in mind for later, though 
> 
> As always, thank you to those of you that decided to click and read on this!!


End file.
